But the remainder of the day would fail me if I undertook to set forth the advantages we
 should gain by such a course. This much, at any rate, is clear to all—that we have been
 superior to all the Hellenes, not because of the size of our city or the number of its
 inhabitants, Sparta was about six miles in circumference. The number of pure Spartan
 inhabitants never exceeded 10,000. but because the government which we have
 established is like a military camp, well administered and rendering willing obedience to
 its officers. The whole life of a Spartan youth was
 supervised by military officers of one sort or another. Those over twenty years of age
 ate at a common table, or military mess. War was the first and only duty of a Spartan
 citizen, and obedience more important even than life. If, then, we shall create
 in reality that which it has profited us to imitate, there can be no doubt that we shall
 easily overcome our foes. We know, moreover, that those who became the founders of this city entered the
 Peloponnesus with but a small army and yet made
 themselves masters of many powerful states. For example, of
 Corinth , Sicyon and Megara . It
 were fitting, then, to imitate our forefathers and, by retracing our steps, now that we
 have stumbled in our course, try to win back the honors and the dominions which were
 formerly ours. But, monstrous above all things would be our conduct if, knowing well that the Athenians
 abandoned their country to preserve the freedom of the Hellenes, Cf. Isoc. 4.96 . we should lack the courage
 to give up our city even to preserve our own lives, and should refuse, when it behoves us
 to set the example for others in such deeds, even to imitate the conduct of the Athenians.
 Even more should we deserve the ridicule of men if, having before us the example of the
 Phocaeans who, to escape the tyranny of the Great King, left Asia and founded a new
 settlement at Massilia , The first party of the Phocaeans left Asia about 524
 B.C. Besieged by Harpalus, they swore that never would they return to their
 city until the iron which they had cast into the sea should rise and float on the water.
 See Horace, Epode. xvi., and Hdt. 1.165 . A
 second group came to Marseilles later. See
 Paus. 10.8.4 . we should sink into such abjectness
 of spirit as to submit to the dictates of those whose masters we have always been
 throughout our history. But we must not let our minds dwell on the day when we shall have to send away from us
 those who are nearest and dearest to us; no, we must at once begin to look forward to that
 good time when, victorious over our foes, we shall restore our city, bring back our own
 people, and prove to the world that while we now have experienced reverses unjustly, in
 times past we justly claimed precedence over all others.